Mortgage Applications Show Little Movement

United States mortgage applications showed little change from the prior week, as an increase in the demand for home mortgage loans to buy homes offset a drop in applications to refinance.

The Mortgage Bankers Association said its mortgage applications index rose by an anemic 0.1 percent to a seasonally adjusted 619.4 in the week ending June 29, nearing its lowest levels since mid-February.

The MBA’s purchase index - specifically gauging the level of home mortgage activity for would-be home buyers - increased 2.0 percent to 437.3.

But at the same time, mortgage refinancing applications fell by 2.6 percent to 1,687.2 on a seasonally-adjusted basis, the lowest this year.

Home mortgage refinancing represented just 37.8 percent of all applications in the latest week, down from 38.7 percent the prior week.

A four-week moving average, exhibiting trends better than the mercurial weekly figures, shows the overall applications index down 0.2 percent.

Meanwhile, the home purchase loan index is up 0.2 percent at 445.4 and the mortgage refinancing index is down 1.0 percent at 1,762.6.

The average 30-year fixed mortgage rates, excluding fees, fell 0.10 percent to 6.50 percent, the association also reported this morning.

SOURCE: Reuters